Hot! Hot! Hot!

That's the new Three H's around here. Although, Hazy and Humid are still about. It was a farookin' hot, hot day here at the Aerie. The temperature reached the 90 degree mark and the blazing sun made it feel even hotter when you ventured out. Still no rain today or in the near future. Everything is drying up. (Who was that sonfoagun who prayed for the rains of April, May and early June to cease? Can we get him to work on praying for an economic recovery?)

Naturally, with everything dry as a bone, the town (or maybe the gas company) decided it was time to grade the dirt roads around the Aerie. Don't get me wrong, the roads needed grading. There were clusters of potholes numerous enough and large enough that you might think the AF had sent a drone to bomb. Dust has become a regular thing. You hang back from any vehicle in front of you because the dust cloud might clog your cars air filter--and you cant see the leading vehicle if you get too close anyway. All you can be sure of is that it's there--somewhere--ahead of you. Once they (whoever "they" is) finish grading a section of the road, they spread calcium and water on it in the hopes that will keep the dust settled. Sometimes it works.

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We did our best to help boost the economy in these parts today.

After I watered the garden this morning, Terry and I did venture out. First we stopped at Grandma's on Rt. 15 in Mansfield for a hearty breakfast and then we went over to Murphy's Blueberry Farm to pick. And pick. And pick. We picked for about two hours and, when all said and done, put 19 Ziploc packages--each containing 2 cups--of blueberries into the freezer. Nine quarts of berries for two hours work (and $23.50) isn't so bad. It was too hot to think about making BB jam so they all got froze. This time. Next time--next Monday, weather permitting--may be a different story.

Then we went shopping. The new furniture didn't come with a recliner, but I didn't need one since there are two upstairs in the loft in my TV zone. Nor did they have a matching ottoman which would allow me to put my feet up and relax with my laptop, so we went looking for one (ottoman, that is) at Beiters in Mansfield. We also were in the market for and picked up two new window air conditioners--one 8000 BTU unit for our bedroom so we can semi-retire the 10+ year-old machine that's been doing yoeman's work for us (it will get moved to Terry's TV/sewing room which is smaller in size and lacking a cathedral ceiling) and a second smaller 6000 BTU unit for the guest bedroom. They also had a couple of swiveling stools on clearance which I picked up for my workshop. One is just the right height for working on the scroll saw and the other is perfect for the workbench. (And, should it stay this hot much longer, I'll be spending lots of time down in the (relatively) cool, cool workshop/basement--or in bed--with the AC running.)

Next we stopped at Lowe's to pick up some wooden woven rollup shades for the French doors in the living room. During the summer the late afternoon sun comes in that glass and creates a greenhouse effect. While the glass above the doors will still admit sun, the new shades will cut the amount in half and, hopefully, that will result in a little cooler conditions.

Back home, I installed the new AC in the guest BR and the shades in the living room. (The other AC installation and movement will be done tomorrow AM.) Only bad thing about the shades is the pull cord is on the right side and can not easily be switched to the left because the manufacturer used rivets and not bolts to attach the hardware. This makes things a little dicey for the one over the left side of the French doors. I might have to thing about drilling out the rivets at some point, but, since we seldom open those doors, the shades will do just fine as they are for now.

I also picked string beans, cukes and zukes. We've now got five quarts of beans in the freezer and will probably get a quart a day for the next week or so--unless another ground hog shows up. The zukes we've been getting are just the right size for grilling or steaming--with one exception which will become zucchini bread soon. There are currently half a dozen little zukes (about 4-5 inches long) on the plants. They will be ready for harvest in a day or two. I can foresee a day in the near future when we will allow them to get into the 10-12" range on purpose so they can be used for breads. A fella can only eat so much zucchini before crying, "Enough!" but there there NEVER comes a time when there is enough zucchini bread!

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Driving around today, Terry commented on how picturesque the hay fields look with their rolled up bales of hay sitting there ever hundred feet or so. We saw a few places where the farmer had recently cut his hay bit had not yet baled it. The stuff was laying in the hot sun drying nicely. Other fields showed signs of recent plowing but no growth. That made me think about how tenuous things can be for a farmer. Earlier this these guys couldn't get into their fields to cut hay or even plow for planting. Now, while they can cut and bale and plow, they're concern is the need for rain to make that hay produce a second and third crop or for the newly planted seeds to germinate and grow. Farming's a tough and unpredictable livelihood.